The Nike After Dark Tour (ADT) returns this fall with a series of races in major cities across the globe. Stateside, the ADT half marathon starts at 5 p.m. in Los Angeles, October 24. The race is sold out, but you don’t have to race in L.A. to snag hyper pink ADT merch, which is available now at nike.com.
The tour centers on fostering a sense of community for women runners, offering them training plans through the Nike Run Club app. The mission of ADT is to bring all levels and backgrounds of women together in a space where they are supported and motivated to race. The tour’s first year ushered in a massive turnout of 50,000 women runners, according to Seema Simmons, Nike’s VP/GM of North America.
Many of these participants were first-timers. Of the 14,000 women participating in last year’s L.A. race, 43 percent were racing their first half marathon. Simmons, known as the godmother of ADT among her cohort, hopped on a video call with Runner’s World to talk about the tour and how women are integral in Nike’s product innovations.
She will also be lining up at the L.A. start line as a first-time half marathoner, making Nike’s ADT a part of her own personal journey. The ADT Collection includes several of our favorite Nike trainers, as well as ADT-themed apparel and bling. Shoes like the Vomero 18 and Pegasus 42 got the hyper pink ADT treatment.
Simmons and her team noticed that women, particularly Gen Z, were the drivers of running’s growth these past couple of years. The After Dark Tour was the brand’s way of inviting even more new runners into the fold, as well as offering them support along the way, culminating into a race to celebrate these goals. ADT reimagines Nike’s past women’s race series format, serving as a celebratory event that guides runners throughout their run journey, cultivating community.
The event is even more meaningful because it’s held at night—a time when women are afraid to run alone. The brand noticed the value in women’s voices when it developed the Vomero 18—and then the Alphafly 3 and Structure franchise—by listening to women’s feedback. But what makes women’s voices so valuable when it comes to product innovation?
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